George Fahey

George Fahey (1898-1981) was Taoiseach of Ireland from 1 January 1946 to 6 February 1950, preceding Colm O'Farrell. He was a member of Fine Gael.

Biography
George Fahey was born in Rolestown, County Dublin, Ireland in 1898, and he took part in the 1916 Easter Rising in Dublin. Fahey joined Sinn Fein in 1918 and served in the Irish Republican Army during the Irish War of Independence, although he came to support the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921, and was elected to the Dail Eireann in 1923 as a pro-treaty TD. Following the formation of Fine Gael in 1933, Fahey became the leader of its County Dublin branch. In 1945, following the end of World War II, he became leader of Fine Gael, and Fine Gael's victory in the 1946 election led to Fahey becoming Taoiseach.

Fahey's government controlled 45% of the upper house, and it relied on an alliance with Sinn Fein to keep Fianna Fail out of power. Fahey formed the Comhaontas na Ceart coalition with his Sinn Fein counterpart Dermot Considine, and his government oversaw the raising of taxes on all classes, the vast reduction of military spending, and a rising national debt. His government's only solution was to raise taxes and tariffs and slash military spending, but he was not willing to make cuts to vital social programmes such as administration, education, and social spending. His government's inability to contain the economic crisis led to the 1946 snap election, which Fine Gael and Sinn Fein won with flying colors. The party's share of the vote was reduced in the 1949 election, as Fianna Fail mobilized opposition to the Emergency Powers Act 1939 and Fine Gael's manipulation of public opinion. In 1950, Fahey was ousted after Fianna Fail won yet another snap election, and Colm O'Farrell became the new Taoiseach. Fahey resigned as Fine Gael leader, and he died in Dublin in 1981.